India continued to rank low in the Human Development Index (HDI), climbing just one notch to the 130th rank in the latest UNDP report on account of rise in life expectancy and per capita income.
India ranked 130 among 188 countries in Human Development Report 2015 released today by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The ranking is for the year 2014.
As per the latest report, India's rank has moved from 131 to 130. India's HDI rank between 2009 and 2014 has risen six positions.
"India's HDI value for 2014 is 0.609, which puts the country in the medium human development category, positioning it at 130 out of 188 countries and territories.
"Between 1980 and 2014, India's HDI value increased from 0.362 to 0.609, an increase of 68.1 per cent or an average annual increase of about 1.54 per cent," a note circulated with the report said.
Norway topped followed by Australia and Switzerland. As per the report, the HDI rank of Bangladesh and Pakistan was 142 and 147, respectively. Among the BRICS nations, India was ranked lowest. Other countries in the group are Brazil, Russia, China and South Africa.
The HDI is an average measure of basic human development achievements in a country. It is a summary measure for assessing long-term progress in three basic dimensions of human development -- a long and healthy life, access to knowledge and a decent standard of living.
Life expectancy at birth increased to 68 years in 2014 from 67.6 in the previous year and 53.9 in 1980.
Gross National Income (GNI) per capita was USD 5,497 in 2014 up from USD 5,180 in 2013 and USD 1,255 in 1980. India's GNI per capita increased by about 338 per cent between 1980 and 2014.
However as per the report, the expected years of schooling is stagnant at 11.7 since 2011. Also, mean years of schooling at 5.4 has not changed since 2010.
Between 1980 and 2014, India's life expectancy at birth increased by 14.1 years, while mean years of schooling increased by 3.5 years and expected years of schooling increased by 5.3 years.
